Feddie over at Southern Appeal has
The post concerns, among other things, the fact that Romney is a Mormon, and there is a question of whether the Republican party’s base will support him enough for him to be the nominee–and, if not, how Mormon Republicans will react to that.
I’m not a Republican. I’m not a member of any political party–nor do I want to be. But I do have some thoughts on this issue.
I don’t know whether the Republican base is willing to support Romney enough to make him the ’08 nominee (though I doubt it, for a variety of reasons, including the fact he’s apparently a bit soft on life issues–which is common for Mormons). Nor do I know how Mormon Republicans might perceive this or what action they might take.
But I do know this: Mitt Romney is not going to be president.
Even if he’s put up against a polarizing figure like Hillary Clinton, he’s not going to be president.
Why?
Because the nation is too narrowly divided at the moment. George Bush lost the popular vote in ’00 because of the drunk driving issue that surfaced at the last minute and caused a percentage of Evangelical voters to get disillusioned with him and stay home on Election Day. He easily could have lost the popular vote (and the electoral vote) if his opponent in ’04 hadn’t been such a walking disaster of a candidate.
Things are just too tight right now for a Republican presidential candidate to be able to get into office if a significant chunk of the Evangelical or Catholic vote decides to just stay home.
Having a Mormon on the ticket is just the thing to cause that to happen.
Sure, many Evangelicals and Catholics will hold their nose and vote for a Mormon if the alternative is an abortion harpy like Hillary. Many would conclude that, as bad as having a polytheist with aspirations to godhood would be as Commander In Chief, it’s something that must be endured for the sake of the babies who’ll get killed through the extension of the abortion holocaust.
That’s assuming Roe is still in place in ’08, which it may not be. If it’s not then Evangelicals and Catholics have even LESS incentive to vote for a Mormon.
But while many would vote for him, many would also stay home.
Think about it from the perspective of the stay-homers: "Despite claims to the contrary, Mormons are not just other Christians. They’re not Christians at all. They are polytheists who themselves believe that they can become gods, running planets or universes with billions of people worshipping them for all eternity," the stay-homers would say. "Worse, they are polytheists with aspirations to godhood who ARE MASQUERADING AS CHRISTIANS, saying that true Christianity IS polytheism with the possibility of becoming the god of your own planet or universe."
"Can you imagine what it would do to validate Mormonism in the public eye if a Mormon were elected president?" the stay-homers would say. "It would cause VAST numbers of people–all over the world–would be duped into thinking that Mormons are Christians and that their religion is ‘okay.’ Many would even convert."
That’s something that is so frightening a prospect that a significant number of Evangelicals and Catholics will conclude–no matter who the opposing nominee is–is simply unacceptable, even if it means delaying the end of the abortion holocaust.
I’m not saying that such folks would be right or wrong. I’m simply saying that they exist–and that they exist in significant enough numbers to cause the Republicans to lose the election.
Mormons may be electable as governors in states like Utah, where Mormons are a majority, or Massachusetts, where people don’t take religion seriously. But you need more than Utah and Massachusetts to win the presidency as a Republican.
You also need Georgia and the Carolinas and Mississippi and Louisiana and Texas and Arkansas and Tennessee and Kentucky and Oklahoma and all kinds of places like that where they take religion much more seriously and where Mormons are only a tiny percentage of the state population.
There’s also the collateral loss of votes from the fact that a Mormon standardbearer would depress the base.
The Republican base depends heavily on Evangelicals and Catholics to give money, get out the vote, and talk up their candiates. If a significant chunk of the base is holding their noses about their nominee, that’s going to have an effect. Even if hardcore partisans are willing to hold their noses and vote for a Mormon, they won’t be excitedly and enthusiastically behind him. They won’t be motivated to give money or put up yard signs or make phone calls or stuff envelopes, or what have you. The energized get-out-the-vote effort that won the election for Bush in ’04 simply won’t be there for a Mormon.
In his post, Feddie remarks that Mormons are important allies in the culture war. That’s true. We need all the votes we can get to end abortion, and while the Mormon church is softer on abortion than it should be, Mormons are important allies in the fight to end abortion.
But there’s a difference between having someone as an ally and having him as a leader. Coalitions need all kinds of people as allies who wouldn’t be acceptable as leaders. That’s the nature of things.
And there are many Evangelicals and Catholics who would find a polytheist who is open to the idea of his own eventual godhood to be unacceptable as a leader.
Enough to cost the Republicans the election.
